June 3, 2013
Kamchatka, Russia
Click on pics to enlarge
The ship repositioned, and around 4:00 PM, following a breezy but beautiful lunch on the Lido Deck, we were back into Zodiacs - me with dry socks and the boots dried somewhat after my attacking their linings with the hairdryer in my cabin (see former post!) - and headed up the Chazma River.
Chazma River with steaming hot springs in the distance....
...still a lot of frozen snow on the ground.
First sighting of a local bear - note the grandeur
of the still heavily snow covered mountain range, and
this was Kamchatka's early Summer.
Pic above via Paula ~ she of the big, long expensive lens!
We did manage to get in closer to the bear who just stared
at us now and then while munching on his late lunch.
Nowhere in Siberia can such enormous brown bears be found, but they are very abundant in Kamchatka, home to the densest population of brown bears in the world. An adult male can weigh up to one ton and stand nine feet tall. They are somewhat comparable to the American grizzly bear, though not so aggressive and predatory, thankfully!
Once on land, we were surprised to find several
dilapidated huts.....
Also, many of the Brits donned their very British swimming costumes (guess Paula and I HAVE been gone from Britain far too long), and braving the possibility of a bear showing up while partaking of the waters, took the plunge. Hats bikinis and Speedos off to them!!!
Meanwhile I did my usual foraging through the undergrowth capturing Nature's simple and elegant beauty.......
With the sun going down turning the water into dancing diamonds, and the steam rising to almost obliterate the little wooden huts, we returned to the waiting ship thrilled from the unexpected adventure............ready for dinner, and the evening recap which was full of laughs when the pics of the ardent swimmers and spa plungers were shared!
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